[3] exam 3 Sensation and Perception - 11.2 Speech

Speech Sounds: Phoneme Production

Across about 5,000 spoken languages, over __ are produced –most using this process.

850 distinct speech sounds.

Speech Production: Respiration, Phonation, & Articulation

Resonance occurs when ?.

• Humans modify resonance by shifting the ?,?,?,?

• This shapes the ? for every sound.

• Different shapes = __.

• Especially important for ? and voiced sounds.

• Core to identifying __ across talkers.

vocal tract shape boosts some frequencies and dampens others.

tongue, jaw, lips, and velum [soft palate in back roof of mouth].

filter function.

different frequency emphasis.

vowels.

phonemes [A phoneme is a distinct speech sound that, if changed, can change a word’s meaning. Example in English: /p/ in pat. /b/ in bat. These are different phonemes because: changing one changes the meaning of the word. 2. Phonemes are about sound, not spelling. Phonemes are sounds, not letters. Example: “phone” = /f/ /oʊ/ /n/. The “ph” spelling still represents the /f/ sound. So: letters ≠ phonemes. phonemes = mental sound units].

Speech Production: Vowels & Formants

Vowels are produced with relatively open/closed airflow.

• Sound shape depends on ?,?,?,?

Formants are __.

• F1 = ?

• F2 = ?

• F3 = ?

open [no major blockage in the mouth].

tongue, jaw, lips, and velum.

vocal tract resonance peaks that distinguish vowels.

Mouth openness.

Tongue position.

Lip rounding / r-colored vowels.

Speech Production: Formants Transitions & Consonants

Formant Transitions are __.

• Crucial for __ (e.g., “b” in bat vs. “d” in dot).

Consonants obstruct ? and are classified by: (list 3)

rapid shifts in resonance as a consonant moves into a vowel.

consonant identity.

airflow.

• Place of Articulation (where - e.g., lips, velum).

• Manner of Articulation (degree of obstruction).

• Voicing (vibration or not: voiced or voiceless).

Speech Perception – Phonemes & the Variability Problem

__ are the smallest sound units in speech.

• They vary across languages and can’t be identified by ? alone.

• __ affects their acoustic form– this is the variability problem.

Coarticulation: ?

• __ pitch, accent, and pace create additional variation.

Phonemes.

frequency.

Context.

Overlap between adjacent sounds causes shifts in sound.

Speaker.

Speech Perception: Coarticulation & Contrast Enhancement

Speech is fast (?-? sounds/sec), creating __ in articulation and acoustics.

__ helps distinguish successive sounds by emphasizing ?, especially in ?.

• Auditory system amplifies __ (e.g., “eebah” vs. “oodah”).

• Supports accurate __–even when formants overlap across phonemes.

10–15. coarticulation–overlap.

Contrast enhancement. differences. Formants.

spectral contrasts [Formants are key cues for vowels (like F1 and F2). The brain: Pays special attention to changes in formants across time. Emphasizes shifts between vowel sounds. Example: “eebah” vs. “oodah”. Even if the raw signals overlap: The brain highlights the differences in resonance patterns. So you clearly hear two different vowel sequences].

recognition.